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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28608585">Non-exclusive</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Herlovestoryx/pseuds/Herlovestoryx'>Herlovestoryx</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Persona 5</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, Implied Relationships, Implied Sexual Content, M/M, POV Second Person, Phantom thieves of hearts mentioned, Traitor! Ryuji</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-01-07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-01-07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 08:42:00</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Major Character Death</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,808</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28608585</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Herlovestoryx/pseuds/Herlovestoryx</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>(You fall into this non exclusive relationship because it's good. Because its ryuji.)</p><p>...<br/>Or Akira makes mistakes and does not see what's brewing under the seams.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Akechi Goro/Sakamoto Ryuji, Kurusu Akira/Sakamoto Ryuji, Persona 5 Protagonist/Sakamoto Ryuji</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>45</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Non-exclusive</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hello!<br/>I've been reading way too many traitor! Ryuji fics (pretty much the ones available) and really can't get over it. So here's my take :)<br/>Low caps cause this was written on my phone in the earlier hours instead of me sleeping which also means theres probably mistakes and random incoherent lines somewhere...I'll probably deal with it at some point.<br/>...</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>(You fall into this non exclusive relationship because it's good. Because its ryuji. You fall into it, and you never realised what you had until everything came crashing down.)</p><p>He kisses you sometimes. Slow and deep. Soft lips slide against yours, a tongue swiping at the bottom of your lips begging for entry. It's good. It's really good. You never question it. You wonder why.</p><p>Sometimes when you look at ryuji, it's hard to not see him as somewhat of a nuisance. It fills you up with a guilt automatically, (because this is your best friend. The first person to ever talk to you face to face when you came here-outcasted and treated like a burden-the first person to ever <em>see </em>you- the first person to ever treat you like a human being-) but the thought pops up unbidden and it stays and grows whenever he's yelling, or arguing with morgana or just being him unfiltered.</p><p>After awhile you let your guilt go and it becomes increasingly difficult to defend him when morgana calls him dumb or ann says he's hopeless or  when futaba makes fun of Ryuji's love life and its epic failure. You bite your lip when it happens because at least some of it, is true. He is not smart and he is hopeless. There's no lie there.</p><p>(they don't know that sometimes ryuji kisses you. And that you let him. That in those sleepover of yours you kiss and kiss until your both breathless. Until your panting beneath him and he's tearing off your shirt. His lips mouthing at you neck, and you grind up just so you can hear him moan a soft broken <em>aki-</em>)</p><p>You love him. You do. And you're sure the rest of the team does as well, but ryuji is a force to be reckoned with and sometimes it's too much to be near him without some damage control.</p><p>And if that damage control comes with a few insults, well its not like they mean it too much. You think nothing of it. What's a little bullying amongst friends anyways? Ryuji knows that they care about him, that's enough right ?</p><p>(You never see the face ryuji pulls when an insult lands too strong. The way his face crumbles when morgana calls him useless in mementos with everybody giggling-agreeing in the background. How he looked destroyed when haru implied that he was sort of a brute or how he looked down at the ground in shame when yusuke pretty much said everyone except ryuji were his ideal aesthetic.)</p><p> (He still kisses you. Not as much now. Only after a bad trip in a palace where he got hit hard protecting Ann or after a hard day at school, and he kisses you to stop from complaining about how some teacher accused him of skipping class when he was just going to the toilet or how a classmate tripped him over when he was going to sit down. He kisses you and it's harder and more biting than all the other ones you've shared at the dead of the night as if he's trying to pour out all his frustrations onto your lips. And you let him. You still let him, never questioning why.)</p><p> </p><p>And then akechi joins. And some sort balance shifts and turns over, fallen off its axis. You can't place what, but its there. Some sort of wrongness shifting in the air.</p><p>Akechi joins and ryuji acts the same way he's always had whenever the detective prince is mentioned. Explosive. Annoyed. Straight up tells akechi that he's watching him, that one wrong move and he's gonna hit him with ziodyne and watch him go flying. Morgana laughs, says that ryuji threat is pretty much useless but that none of them trust akechi, none of them ever will.</p><p>(You're not looking. And when you think back to this you think you should've been. Maybe it would've saved you. Because Ryuji's eyes glint dangerously, recklessly when morgana laughs and for a quick second akechi smirks dignified and righteous.)</p><p>(No one notices and the moment passes quicker than lightening.)</p><p> </p><p>Akechi laughs, "well, we have already came to a compromise. And I will stick to my end of the deal, as long as you all complete yours. There would be no reason for any of you to harm me, sakamoto." Ryuji snorts, crossing his arms and looking away. "Yeah, sure."</p><p>You roll your eyes, but that's the end of that. When the meeting ends, ryuji like always is the last one to go. He kisses you like always, but it's different this time. It's way too soft. Chaste. You don't think you like it. When he pulls back, he looks a little apologetic. But all he says is that he has to go back home to cook for his ma, and he'll see you tomorrow okay, and he leaves you alone in the attic, cold and wondering.</p><p>It goes like that for days. The kisses you share are soft. Pliant. Almost as if he's pulling away from you. You really don't like it. If anything it makes you take charge. You corner him in the boys bathroom on the second floor and kiss him. When he stays over and you're playing video games, you kiss him. At the back of morgana in  metaverse after a whole day of dungeon crawling, you kiss him. Sound-less and sweet. You're not even been subtle about it. That's how desperate you've become. (You never notice how akechi huffs in annoyance whenever he catches you kissing ryuji. How his pleasant smiles becomes harder or how his hits on shadows are ruthless and disjointed in comparison to how perfect it usually is. You don't see ryujis flash of concern either or how he looks at akechi in apology.)</p><p>(You don't even notice that ryujis has stopped kissing you back.)</p><p>When you finally clear sae's palace and you're in the dammed interrogation room, waiting for your work to come into fruition it doesn't occur to you to be cautious. Something has not been right since the moment akechi joined and you never followed up on that, you let your maxed out confidence take charge and put any thought of doubt away. You have all the trust in your confidants and that's all there is to it.</p><p>So. It comes as a shock that at one moment there's nothing in front of you and then the next, there's akechi goro standing in front of your little table, hands twirling his phone. He scoffs down at you and your confusion and taunts " bad luck kurusu, your little plan failed."</p><p>"W-what?"</p><p>"It seems " akechi continues seemingly ignoring you, "that you have a traitor in your mix" he smiles down at you shark like. " would you like a guess on who?"</p><p>And that's when you notice the figure behind him. The person almost motionless until akechi brought them up startling them.</p><p>When ryuji steps out from behind akechi, with a small smile on his face, you're really speechless. "Hey, Aki," He says and takes a seat right in front of you. Akechi moves back, goes to stand at the corner of the room. </p><p>" Dont take too long ryuji." He says. You watch ryuji roll his eyes, a small smile tugging at his lips. "Yeah yeah princess." He answers back. You're still staring at him. You can't move your mouth. You don't know what to say. Neither of you talk for a second. Or two. Or three. When ryuji sighs suddenly it startles you, and you jerk back into motion. You watch as ryuji tilts his head back and stares at the ceiling. "I used to think you were my everythin' 'kira. That there was nothin' I wouldn't have done for ya." He chuckles and looks back at you. Stares deep into your eyes. "Now look. Can't even say that I'm sorry 'bout this."</p><p>"R-ryuji what...?" You say, breathlessly confused. " wh-"</p><p>"Why?" He finishes. He's smirking at you. It doesn't suit his face. It's hard lines and jagged too big on his features. " I could give ya a full report but that'll take too long. And Princess goro over here will lecture me if we run outta time. So I'll just say Shinjuku and hope you'll get it." </p><p>You don't. Not really. You remember getting some info with ryuji and you remember him being annoying. Loud. When two guys started to chat him up, and then started chasing him, you listened to morgana and left because honestly you didn't want to deal with that. You wanted to go to bed. Ryuji reads that off your face somehow. You watch him laugh, harsh and annoyed.</p><p>" should've known that it didn't even register in your head." He snorts loudly, and behind him akechi rolls his eyes and starts taping his foot. There's something soft in his glance as he watches ryuji  who is laughing at you. You hate it.</p><p>Ryuji stops laughing almost abruptly, his voice angry filled with barley restrained rage that you know he's capable of, " you've hurt me a lot kurusu. You left me. You let the rest of them bully me. You insulted me and talked shit behind my back, and you still expected me to love you. You still expected me to be <em>yours</em>."</p><p>you're lost. something in his words is not adding up in your brain. "What...?"  You say instead of the rush of words projecting inside your head.</p><p>But instead of answering your question, he shakes his head violently irritated. "No. I'm not gonna give you more than that. If you don't even know what you did, there's no fuckin' point of me givin' ya a reason." He stands up, "'kechi, do your thing and lets go."</p><p>"Huh? W-wait, ryuji...!" You shout, tugging hard at your restraints. But ryuji just continues to ignore you, going to stand by akechi's side as the detective takes his position.</p><p>"I would love to say that it is a pity to see you go like this kurusu." Akechi says. He already has his gun ready, keeps cocking it as if to test the best angle. "But you should have expected this outcome. Honestly, I'm a little disappointed." </p><p>There's tears in your eyes, and you're shaking. You can't seem to stop. You're staring at ryuji, begging, pleading with him to stop this. To tell you that this is some big joke.</p><p>(That he loves you. That he meant all the kisses he ever gave to you. That none of it was a hoax that-)</p><p>He's looking back you, hearing your pleas but doing nothing. Not moving an inch. </p><p>He shrugs and says " Goodbye akira" and that's the last thing he ever says to you. The sound of a trigger goes off. The last thing you ever say is a choked out 'I love you.'</p>
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